Some Mornings You Need a Laugh

I like to read Overheard in New York occasionally. It reminds me of stories Maggy tells - especially on those late night cab rides home. It's always good for a laugh. But some stories are just sad.

ed 7/31/08 A friend, whose mother reads the blog, pointed out that the laugh I linked to above was - well - pretty vulgar. So here's another. And another. Maggy's been in New York long enough to be a bit snarky about tourists - including me and my inability to swipe my Metrocard. Though, I must say at least I know what a Metrocard looks like. It says METROCARD in huge letters across the front. Come to think of it... Maggy was only in NY about a week when she started being snarky about tourists.

And the comment from Anonymous is right. Overheard in Ithaca is funny too - and less vulgar. I should send in my favorite: Overheard in the toy aisle of Wegman's. Wistful five-year-old girl, "Mommy, why don't you like Barbie?" Exasperated mom, "Because no one really looks like that." I wonder if she feels that way about Cabbage Patch dolls, too.

EPA and Global Warming

On West Wing staffers referred to Friday press releases as "taking out the trash." Stories released on Friday don't get as much attention over the weekend as weekday stories. That seems to be the fate of Friday's story about the EPA's report on the public welfare threat of global warming. I heard about it on The News Hour. But PBS didn't post it on the website. This LA Times article is very similar to the PBS story. This NY Times article has a different perspective.

As I understand it, last year the Supreme Court ruled that greenhouse gases are air pollutants subject to federal regulation under the Clean Air Act. If the EPA finds they are a threat to the public, the court said, the agency is required to produce regulations to reduce the risk. Apparently, the EPA report found that indeed, greenhouse gases are a public threat but that the Clean Air Act is inadequate to address the issues. Incidentally, the report released Friday called "Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking" triggers a 120 day period allowing for public comment.

All this relates to a comment Councilperson Makar made last week just prior to the Town Board meeting: "Why can't we get anything done?" (He might have said it louder than that.) His frustration surrounds a number of good ideas that have grown into proposals and stalled there. Several of these hinge on putting to use a substantial fund the town has accumulated from repayments of former HUD loans.

David did a great deal of research for these proposals last year. And Jason Leifer has joined in the effort to put together proposals for:

• teaming with Tompkins County Area Development to make at least one substantial economic development loan,
• teaming with AFCU in a program to make matching grants to small businesses
• small grants to low and moderate income households to make home improvements related to energy conservation.

Given all the development work David did last year, you'd think seven months in 2008 would have been enough to get the programs off the drawing board. But, no. One of the obstacles is that we don't have a staff member committed to economic development or housing. So, all the work has fallen to board members who have other full time occupations because their town salaries are about $500 a month. Furthermore, the Town Board meets only once a month. In addition to these three programs, last week's agenda included at least ten other major issues and several less critical ones. We try, and often fail, to keep the meeting under four hours from 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM. That doesn't leave much room for discussion and action.

(Crossposted at Dryden Democrats)

Bluebirds

My elected position doesn't pay much (about $16,000) but thanks to the efforts of the previous decade's elected officials and taxpayers, I have a really nice office. Don't get me wrong. There's nothing particularly luxurious about it. It's an 8 x 10 room with a desk, a bookshelf and a computer. But the window has this terrific view.





This picture was taken in January when I moved into the office.








In March, after I saw bluebirds swooping over the field, we contacted the local Bluebird Association and they came to put up bluebird nest boxes.



Bluebirds moved into one of the boxes, hatched eggs and are now busily feeding them.






I'd never seen a bluebird before March (tho' Bill insists he once pointed one out to me.) Now I have my very own picture.

Yesterday's Project

Our task yesterday was to finish cleaning up the back yard including the firewood I never finished stacking last year. For nine months I told B, "Don't worry. I'll take care of it." But, of course, I never did. As it turned out, if I had finished stacking it in the shed, I would have had to move it back out when we tore down the shed. I admit that for those nine months I had no idea that we'd be tearing down the shed. But I'm always delighted when procrastination pays off.

The lawn slopes down under the clothesline hiding the pile of scrap lumber behind the firewood. For twenty years or more I stored firewood there while it dried and behind it I tossed all sorts of wood scraps that I didn't know what else to do with.

The inexorable process of filling empty space begins...

I'm no longer tiptoeing barefoot across the pristine concrete floor. I walk right in, even with muddy feet.

I have a deep seated dread of seeing my beautiful new garage become the dark hole of dead storage that so many garages are. This garage was designed to hold: the car, firewood and tools. Period. Check back next year to see how I'm doing.

Belinda started at 8:30 and I joined the project around 10:00. By 4:00 we felt we had really earned our cocktail.

I think Belinda's envisioning a lovely, wide expanse of grass to mow. But I'm definitely seeing an opportunity for more ferns and woodland plants...

Unexpected Entertainment

Remember my new "sun tunnel?" Turns out it has a bonus entertainment value. It's a wild light show in a thunderstorm. If I had a real internet connection, I'd add a video. But use your imagination. Don't forget, it's not just a hole in the ceiling. It has a lens on top. It was GREAT!

By the way, last week I noticed that a house near my office was having a sun tunnel just like mine installed.

There's not much to say about painting the stairs except that if you're doing it on your day off, it goes well with a beer. And it looks a lot better when it's done.

I should emphasize that these open stairs had to be painted top and bottom, inside and out. I was only on the third tread when I started getting paint on my hands. By the fifth, I also had paint on my feet. Eventually, working on the bottoms and insides the paint started getting in my hair. Someone should remind me next time that happens, to clean up before the paint dries.

In my own defense, I was really focused on trying to avoid falling down the stairs and taking the paint bucket with me. And at that, I succeeded.

Maggy's Birthday v.26

Maggy and Andy were here for the birthday - well, almost. Maggy arrived on the 12th and Andy on the 13th despite the actual birthday being on the 11th. In the immortal words of one of my fellow town board members, upon hearing that Maggy's birthday was on the same night as the board meeting, "Who has a birthday on a Wednesday?"



While she was here, Maggy and Charlie discovered that they both still enjoy riding. That may not be so surprising for Maggy, but Charlie's the same age as she is. For a horse, that's quite a bit older than for a person. So, I'm pleased to see that he's aging so well.

[It's not totally that her stirrups are too long. She's posting and leaning into a turn. Notice that after years of high heels in New York, she still keeps her heels down just fine. Here they are at a walk.]

Construction Phase One Complete

The new living room looks great! Here it is a week ago, painted and empty.



And a few days ago, furnished.






The kitchen, last week, painted and relatively empty.



A few days ago, well, furnished isn't quite the right word. It still needed a bit of work. It's better now. But I don't have a newer picture. I'll wait 'til B gets the cupboards done.





There's still plenty of work to do, but the results won't be so dramatic.



Here's a dramatic hazard of cleaning up after carpenters. This is the end of the hose that connects to our Kirby vacuum cleaner. Look closely at the nail piercing the plastic. Would Kirby use this as an ad for how forceful the vacuum is?

Pouring the concrete. Brud chose this company because the concrete is mixed on site and metered as it pours.


I've never seen the top of a concrete truck as I saw it from the upstairs window.


The guys looked pretty relaxed as the first concrete dripped from the chute.


The pace picked up as they plunged into the relay between two wheelbarrows.


It was great teamwork as two guys alternately dumped their wheelbarrows and two other guys pushed the concrete into place.



They spend about half of their time bent over like this leveling the concrete. My back hurts just thinking about it.



The pace slacked off as they finished up.



Greg stayed pretty late waiting for the concrete to set up enough for this final polishing.

I'm stuck with this advertising on my house for a while longer. It irks me that apparently Du Pont appears not to have a good grip on the concepts of "miracles" and "science."

mir·a·cle: An event that appears inexplicable by the laws of nature and so is
held to be supernatural in origin or an act of God.

sci·ence: The observation, identification, description, experimental investigation, and theoretical explanation of phenomena.

Odd Jobs

Sometimes with so many construction guys around, it's better just to get away and work on one of the many other necessary projects on the imaginary list.

Our garden wagon took its last gasp last week. It's about twenty-five years old and we've never babied it. It's carried manure, firewood, compost, maple sap, people, mulch, rocks. There's rarely room for it in the garage after all its hard work. So, its varnish is long gone.






I'd probably just keep patching it up, but B, who never does anything halfway, got some roughcut hemlock at the nearby sawmill and totally reconstructed the wagon.




There are never pictures of me on the blog 'cause I'm the one taking the pictures. But since B was in charge of these before and after pictures, Murphy and I jumped into the spotlight.

On the topic of B's pictures, this is the one she thinks should be my new headshot. What do you think?

Poetry

Andrew Sullivan reprinted a poem from The Atlantic that took my breath away.




FOSSILS

by J. T. Barbarese


When he was young he used to spend the whole summer
in the abandoned slag heaps around the old mines
outside the city of Scranton. It would take him hours
to pick through the shale stacks, the sweat writing lines
in the dust on his face, and the old ball peen hammer
slung from his belt pinching his belly button.
Some days there was nothing to read but the signatures
of ice and erosion and tools. Then he'd find one,
a slate unnaturally filigreed with the fright masks
of a trilobite, ferns, the inferior commissures
of ancient clams. He would wrap them in moist newspaper
and carry them carefully home. Once his teacher asked
him to talk to the class about fossils.
Satan plants them to trick us,
he said. When I get home I smash them to pieces.



J. T. Barbarese teaches English at Rutgers University. He is the author of New Science (1989) and of a translation of Euripides's Children of Heracles (1999).

The Blue and White Garden

I'm pleased with this white Primula seiboldii in my "Blue and White" garden. Bill and I moved them from his woodland garden last year.

Behind it is a royal blue Centaurea, not quite in bloom. I hope the Primulas last 'til the Centaurea comes out.





In other news from the Blue and White Garden... This Brunnera - also from Bill's woodland.











And Phlox divaricata. Bill gave me this years ago. I don't think it's from his garden. It's a native plant but I think he grew it especially for this spot.

Chicken Door?

Sadly, the new Kitty Door works equally well for chickens. I glanced up from dinner to find Henrietta making her way into the kitchen. Notice Murphy relaxing on the deck just outside the door and you can just make out Jake asleep in the chair. Apparently they don't mind that Henrietta's in the kitchen eating cat food.

But I'm not too happy about it. I'll have to remember to keep the screen door closed.

New View

Now that we have the wonderful new "kitty door" in the kitchen, we reinstalled the old one on the east end of the new room between the garage and the house (where it works perfectly for the first time in twenty-five years.)

The view to the east includes this small garden. (Top, before weeding; bottom, after.) I started this garden years ago primarily to eliminate the need to mow among the trees. I put in a few hostas for structure and transplanted some native ferns. Most of the rest of the plants are native. So the maintenance is mostly deciding which weeds to favor over others.

I always eliminate dandelions. I like them and I have plenty in the lawns. But they're too aggressive in the gardens.

And I always preserve B's favorite, wild geraniums. They're beautiful and a bit too delicate to make a statement without encouragement.

I was reflecting on my choices as I weeded. Take out Creeping Charlie (too aggressive - and face it, no matter how much I pull out, it will always be there); keep most of the Lysimachia (attractive ground covering foliage with great yellow flowers in season.) Keep some of the Celandine and a few patches of violets. It turns out that most of my efforts are to steer the plants I like to places where they look good.

Building Progress

I took this picture of the upstairs kitchen plumbing in case the building inspector didn't show up before the builders started to insulate and sheetrock in preparation for installing a temporary sink. He did come in time to see it, of course. He's been great about helping me with many stages of the project.

Anyway, here's the picture later in the day with the temporary sink in place.

And the view of the creek and the bridge from the kitchen window.

This is the living room last week before windows.





And now, though the window is partly hidden by the sheet rock leaning against it. There's a great view north to the garden (and primary deer grazing area.)

Picture the woodstove on the left and the computer desk on the right. On the very edge to the right is the door to the bedroom.

New Kitty Door

Okay. It's more expensive than the average kitty door - by a factor of 100. And it requires human assistance. But the cats love this door. They can see me in the kitchen and they can assess which other cats are about to ambush them on the way in or out.

In all honesty, they liked the old sliding door just as much. But I love this one. I can open it with one hand and without throwing my entire weight behind it. You know the routine: let the cats out, let the cats in etc all day long. Three cats out, one in, two out, one in and so forth.

Not to mention how much easier it's going to be to go out to the deck with a drink and a snack in my hands.

And So it Grows...

We're making great progress.

This inside second floor view shows the connection to the log house. On the right, where you see the ladder, is actually where the stairs come up and the apartment door will be there soon. The bathroom will be on the left. In the middle will be a closet and, eventually, a door to the second floor of the log house.

More pictures later. There's an army of workers out there now and I'm going to work for some relative peace and quiet.

Let There Be Light

It's a little hard to appreciate my new favorite device from these pictures. But this "before" picture was taken with room light and flash. See the plywood circle on the ceiling?

It was replaced with this "Sun Tunnel" somewhat like the ones we have at my office. There's a lens on the roof and a highly reflective tube through the ceiling to this diffuser.

This "after picture was taken with no electric light and no flash. I should measure the light. But it's as bright as a florescent and I can easily work at my desk with no electric light. This room has no windows. So the Sun Tube also means I don't have to turn on the light just to walk through to my bedroom. I can't wait to get more of them! Let's see, one for the top of the stairs, one for the bedroom hallway, another near my favorite reading chair...


The building guys had never seen one of these. So, I I was happy to catch this highly unusual event on film: men reading instructions.

Errant Hen

This hen has been hanging around the construction site since we began. All our efforts to catch her and keep her with the other chickens have been thwarted. I admit my efforts were somewhat halfhearted because I thought she might be nesting. And I love to watch hens raise their own chicks.

Sure enough. As we started to clean up the pile of scrap lumber, we found this nest with fifteen(!) eggs. You have to admire the craftsmanship. Carefully arranged walnut leaf stems.

What to do? I want to move the lumber. And I want to save my new garden where she's been dustbathing.

Greg stepped in. Last week I gave him some eggs to incubate with his grandchildren. He offered to add these to the eggs in his incubator.

Last night the hen was roosting forlornly halfway up the new back stairs. I had no trouble picking her up and returning to the chicken coop. I feel a little bad about that. But it will be nice not to see new damage to the garden every day.

There's one hen still at large somewhere in the yard. I haven't seen her yet this morning, which leads me to believe that she's nesting somewhere, too.